Rocky Ridge Woes on Sea Otter Classic Mountain Bike Training Ride on Mt Tam

This Morning I rode the Mt. Tam - Sea Otter Classic Training Ride, and it was an amazing ride. Beginning in Ross Common and riding up to Natalin Coffin Greene park, I picked up the bike trail and rode around Lake Phoenix. From there I banged a right up Shaver Grade towards Five Corners. Anytime it's rained within the past two days, expect this stretch of Shaver Grade to be muddy in places and sticky throughout -- it was like a random resistence trainer, where you'd be slogging up the hill and suddenly the dial was turned from "8" to "10". I continued up Shaver Grade from Five Corners and then headed down Sky Oaks and took a left on Bullfrog.

From Bullfrog take a left into the first parking lot and head up towards Bon Tempe Dam. This is one of the most beautiful places in the Mt. Tam watershed. Continue across the dam and ride your bike up Rocky Ridge. MAJOR WARNING -- About .3 miles up Rocky Ridge you will forgot the glory of riding across Bon Tempe Dam, rethink your sport, and wonder why you're not chasing a little white ball around a fairway. But continue on and about .6 miles from the dam, you'll hit a plateau and your life will get better. There's more climbing, but in shorter more gradual sections, with some rolling hills in between. I headed downhill on Rock Springs to Lake Lagunitas, and rode counterclockwise around the lake, crossing 3 wooden footbridges. Take a right on Lakeview which turns into Eldridge Grade and climb another 15oo feet of elevation gain up to the top of Mt. Tam. As detailed in other rides, the last 1.5 miles up to the road near the summit of Tam is challenging with lots of loose rocks, or "death cookies." Getting there covered 12.9 miles and roughly 3200' of elevation gain. Head back down Eldridge all the way, turning right on Eldridge (instead of straight on Lakeview) and back to Natalie Coffin Greene, which is 19.9 miles. Time yourself and see whether this loop ends up being a good indicator of your eventual time at Sea Otter Classic.

You can cool down on the mile back down Lagunitas Road to Ross Commons. For more detailed ride instructions, go to MarinFatTire.com, which is the best source for mountain bike trails on Mt. Tam and in Marin.

If you're so inclined, please post other training rides that you may be doing to train for Sea Otter Classic. Also, if you happen to do the Mt. Tam training ride, post your time and then come back and let us know how well that correlated with your Sea Otter Classic time. I'm not proud of this, but my time was 2 hours and 35 minutes of riding time, with another 15 minutes of stops to down some GU, catch my breath, talk to the varsity team riders on San Rafael Bull Dogs, a the champion high school mountain bike team (these guys blew by me on the final stretch up Mt. Tam, and were training for Otter Creek and their opening NorCal race), and note mileages along the way.

Sea Otter Classic in Marin?

Not exactly. But if you live in Marin and are planning on riding the Sea Otter Classic, consider trying out Lance's Sea Otter Classic ride on MarinFatTire.com. The loop doesn't include singletrack, and the elevation gain of 3200' falls short of last year's Sea Otter Classic loop, but the the ride is 19.9 miles, covers 3200' of elevation gain, and includes two epic climbs of 800' and 1530', which should condition you well for Sea Otter Classic. Obviously the pros get all the attention at Sea Otter, but they have a beginner category - Category 3 - that races on Friday, April 17, 2009. Check it out, ride, and train on Lance's Sea Otter Classic ride!

Great Mountain Bike Loop From Fairfax

Not sure if the best part of the ride was the great views of Lake Lagunitas or the amazing Stout at Iron Springs Pub and Brewery in Fairfax, which is were I began and ended my ride. I headed up Bolinas to Porteous and started at Deer Park. Deer Park trail runs up to Five Corners, and I took Shaver Grade up to Skye Oaks Road. From there I headed up across the Lagunitas dam and around Lake Lagunitas. From there I climbed a bit more up until I hit Eldridge Grade and headed back down to Shaver Grade and up to Five Corners and back down to Deer Park (nice run-on sentence). Overall, the ride was about 11.8 miles and 1400' of elevation gain. For complete ride information, check out MarinFatTire.com. Besides the Stout, the Fish Tacos and Chile Relleno were pretty good, too.

Indian Fire Road Loop From Larkspur

Seventy degrees and great riding today out of Larkspur. I started from Emporio Rulli in Larkspur fueled by a delicious latte and an apricot doughnut - it's a carb, isn't it? I headed out Magnolia Avenue towards Ross Common and headed up Lagunitas Road to Natalie Coffin Greene park. After looping around Lake Phoenix, I headed up Eldridge Grade up to the 1450' elevation and branched off of Eldridge onto Indian Fire Road. From there I banked a right down Blithedale Ridge, one of my favorite trails, and then worked my way back towards Larkspur on Southern Marin Line Road. This ride ends about 800' above Larkspur, so you have to wind down some very steep narrow paved roads, but it's still a chance to take in some great views -- all roads lead back down to Magnolia where you can head straight back to Rulli. For more details and mileages check out MarinFatTire.

Lake Lagunitas Loop - Mt Tam Trails

Mountain biking around Lake Lagunitas is great but every once in awhile it's nice to hike around the lake with your kids and enjoy the serenity of the area. With temperatures in the high 60s, today was a great day to explore the paths and understand hikers' perspectives of mountain bikers -- all of whom passed us today where incredibly considerate.

We began our hike just outside of Fairfax, CA. Take Sir Francis Drake to Bolinas Road and then follow the signs for Lake Lagunitas. Take a left on Sky Oaks Rd and continue to the last parking lot. Hike up through the camping area next to the man-made waterfall, cross the dam, hike past the house, and follow the trails around the lake, including crossing three bridges, which my kids really loved. This is mountain-biking paradise. You can find information about mountain biking trails at http://www.marinfattire.com/. Enjoy!

Marin Fat Tire Is Live - Great Source of Marin Mountain Bike Trails

Check out MarinFatTire.com which is now live and check back regularly as we build out more great trail information.

Last Saturday, I did the up-and-back ride from Ross Common (actually started in Corte Madera) to the East Peak of Mt. Tam. The views from the top (and along the way) and the killer descent are worth the climb. Bike traffic on the trail was surprisingly light for such a gorgeous day. And on a side note, I'm pretty sure I passed Dean Karnazes descending Eldridge Grade not far from the summit.

Let me know if there are trails, rides, links or other resources you'd like me to add to MarinFatTire.com. Thanks!